


Oscar

by flawedamythyst



Series: Winterhawk Tumblr ficlets [8]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: M/M, Werewolf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-26
Updated: 2018-07-26
Packaged: 2019-06-16 20:09:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15444882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flawedamythyst/pseuds/flawedamythyst
Summary: Clint takes in a stray dog.





	Oscar

“That is not a dog,” said Natasha, tensing up as if expecting a fight.

Clint glanced at his couch to see that Oscar had raised his head and was giving Natasha a careful look, as if he knew just how many knives she had on her at any given time.

“Sure, okay,” Clint said, settling next to him and giving him a scratch behind the ears. He’d found him on the streets a couple of weeks ago, looking miserable, and hadn’t been able to resist his begging eyes after he’d followed him home. “Four paws, a wet nose and a waggy tail. He’s clearly a dolphin.”

Oscar wagged his tail and dropped his jaw to give Natasha a doggy grin. Clint ruffled his fur. Natasha sighed.

“He’s a wolf,” she said.

“Why the hell would a wolf be wandering stray in Brooklyn?” asked Clint. Oscar turned to rest his head in his lap, giving him an adoring look. Not for the first time, Clint considered that calling him after a well-known grouch just because he’d been a bit sulky the first couple of days he was off the streets might have been a bit premature.

“That’s a good question,” said Natasha, quietly. She came over to carefully sit on the end of the sofa, still eyeing Oscar with suspicion.

Oscar gave her the same look back. Animals were never sure what to make of Natasha because when she was a human, she smelt like a cat, and when she was a cat, she acted like a human.

“Look, Clint,” she said, carefully. “You know I was a follow-up experiment for the Red Room, yes? I wasn’t the first person they tried to force an animal form on.”

“Yeah, but you said the rest were failures,” said Clint.

Oscar lifted his head up and gave Natasha a long stare that she ignored. “I said almost all the rest were failures,” she said. “All but one. The original was actually a Hydra experiment, and it worked perfectly on him. They passed the notes to the Red Room who only ever successfully repeated the experiment with me.”

Clint was distracted from what she was saying when Oscar started growling at Natasha.

“Hey, come on,” he said, petting him and hoping he’d calm down. “Nat’s a friend. Be nice.”

Natasha lowered her head until she was meeting Oscar’s eyes at the same height. “I am a friend,” she said, very seriously. “I want to help you. You can’t hide forever.”

What the fuck? Clint frowned, but before he could ask any questions, Oscar let out a quiet sigh and laid his head back down on Clint’s knee as if in acceptance.

Natasha nodded and looked back at Clint. “The first successful candidate was known as the Winter Soldier.”

“The legendary badass assassin who turned out to be Cap’s BFF?” asked Clint. “Shit, does Steve know? Does he turn into a cat as well?”

“No,” said Natasha, still eyeing Oscar. “He turns into a wolf.”

It took Clint longer than it probably should have, but he got there eventually. “Wait, you’re saying Oscar is the Winter Soldier?”

Natasha was still staring at Oscar. “I know it seems easier just to stay like that, but hiding is a coward’s way out,” she said to him. “Steve is looking for you because he wants to help you. We all want to help you.”

Oh shit. Clint had his fingers tangled in the fur of an assassin. Yesterday he’d spent an hour play-fighting with him over a dog toy shaped like a duck. How the hell did this shit always happen to him?

He carefully pulled both his hands away from Oscar - the Winter Soldier, Bucky Barnes or whatever he should be calling him.

Oscar let out a sigh and gave him a sad look, then got up and leapt down off the couch. He circled for a moment in front of the window then gave himself a shake, transforming up into the shape of a man.

A smoking hot, naked man, with unbelievable muscles, a beautifully defined jaw, and the same puppy-eyed look that had made Clint take Oscar home in the first place.

“Holy shit,” he said. “I wish I’d known I was sharing my bed with a freaking Adonis.”

The Winter Soldier laughed, and it sounded a bit rusty but that was okay. Clint had managed to get Oscar to go from a downtrodden grouch to playful and unexpectedly cuddly; he was definitely willing to try and do the same again now he was in human form.


End file.
